Great restaurant to go and authentic Nigerian food, with all the variety you have heard of.

Food is always great, try the meat pie please and tell me it's not perfect, I will definitely return! Service was superb as well

I'm am disappointed with the service and food quality it was horrible I order 2 African platters and beans and egusi soup over my rice and chicken, no flavor on the egusi and my chicken was hard and old like it was cooked last week and the jollof rice was not soft and flavorful also I order porridge and stock fish ,the porridge was over cooked and hard and the stock fish was hard with bones it was over cooked too I'm very disappointed i called and spoke to someone name Steve and he said he was going to call the owner and tell him about my situation etc. I spent over $65.00 if they can't get this situation corrected I want a full refund. read more

Order anything besides jollof rice, egusi soup, meat pie, beans and stew at your own risk. The above items seem to be on standby or always ready. Dare order stock fish, curry chicken, tilapia, even shrimp fried rice or some other item that is actually on the menu and you're on your own. The wait times can be over an hour. Believe me, I've experienced it. With the people (cooks?) in the kitchen also working as cashiers. It is ridiculous. Don't go there when you're hungry. Take my word. Do not. Thankfully there is another location in Bowie, smaller, but so far, seems better than Riverdale. read more

Queensway Restaurant & Catering - African Near Me - Riverdale, Maryland

I'm a little disappointed this visit. This is my favorite spot for West African food. The food lacked flavor but was overwhelmed with spice. It was so spicy that it was almost not palatable. Usually there is spice, but is muted.. Kind of like a kick. This was so overwhelming that it was more like a knock out. Also, the meat was not flavorful and was tough. I'm not sure if it's under new ownership or the cooks are different, but this is not what I'm used to and I've been coming here for years. Please go light with the red pepper flakes and taste the food before you serve it. Everything did look good, sadly it did not taste as good as it looked. I also saw the lady put a pot on the very dirty kitchen floor to clean it. This place has definitely gone downhill; no longer my favorite. read more

If egusi soup with fish is your thing, you have hit the sweet spot when you eat food from this restaurant. I have had the same dish on two different occasions from this restaurant in the last two months. The food was just as good each time. Consistent authentic cooking, well seasoned and inspiring. The first time I had the egusi soup with pounded yam. This time, perhaps because it was close to closing time when my food was picked up, I only got egusi soup with fish; They were out of pounded yam. I relished every bit of the food. A single order of egusi soup with two fair sized pieces of fish cost me a total of $10.34. Sure, they could have used a little less oil but this meal was worth every single calorie. If service were as consistent as the egusi soup, this restaurant would deserve more than a five star rating for food and service. read more

Queensway Restaurant & Catering - Egusi soup with fish. I had eaten half of the fish before I took the photo. Yes. It was that good. - African Near Me - Riverdale, Maryland

Delicious! The shop owner, an older lady, was polite and friendly. I got the rice jollof and chicken. Both fantastic but the chicken was exceptional. In and out with my takeaway order within 5 minutes. read more

I had there suya at an event which they caterer and it was great, so I stop by to picked up some. What I received was horrible - old, dried out, tasteless and tougher than old beef jerky. Plus to add to the bad experience - 4 pieces of suya jerky for $10. Actually the onions were the highlight of the plate. Next - Moi Moi - good size, but no salt Lastly - $20 for some tasteless egusi stew with an upcharge for barely no meat. Just terrible!!!! read more

Just ...... don't eat here I just wanted some good food and didn't have time to do research so I picked this one and well . I placed an order via DoorDash, I even called to let them know I was in my way with my food when I arrived I had to wait like 30 additional mins. I would suggest that the should get curtains to cover their kitchen because all she is literally doing is reheating the food in the microwave ............. plantains take like 5 mins to fry sis. Nothing tasted fresh at all.... it was as if the cooked five days ago and don't want the food to go to waste. They also gave me the wrong order. The egusi had no real flavor. The fish smelled like it was going bad. Overall not coming back place is gross she did not cook with love read more

See all

If I could give no star I would and this is coming from a loyal customer of this business for several years. My gripe was I went in today to pick up food, as most have noted there's usually a long wait (I'm Nigerian accustomed to that so I don't go when they tell me to..). Upon entering the restaurant there were 3 young men at the front desk, two had on face masks and appeared to be taking some COVID-19 precautions. However, one who had on a little black face mask which he kept on his chin and left it there for a few minutes after I entered. He later moved it to cover his mouth leaving his nose open. I kept addressing his peers and tried to keep my distance since they were all behind the same counter (making it almost impossible). A few minutes later the young man with the improperly worn mask, took it off placed it on his chin walked over to the register to ring up my order and then turned to speak with me (WITH HIS MASK COMPLETELY OFF). At this point, I told him that it was completely unacceptable that in the few minutes I'd stood there he clearly wasn't taking any of the COVID precautions seriously and thought it was ok to serve a customer with his face completely exposed! The crazy thing is after this confrontation instead of some sort of remorse, apology or acknowledgement that he was in a food establishment risking people's lives (these are the people who pack and handle your food btw), he just smirked and told one of the other guys to serve me while he walked away from the desk. I rarely write reviews and like I said have made several substantial orders from this establishment in the past but clearly they are not taking the pandemic or MD laws seriously by training and enforcing the necessary precautions required to run a food establishment. If he was bold enough to behave this way in front of a customer at the restaurant, imagine what they do with your food when no one is there? I hope that management reads this and takes serious steps towards addressing this as they've clearly lost at least one customer today and can inevitable lose more from such blatant negligence. Lastly, the other issue was how bad the food was which wasn't typical. I ordered basic stew with fish and meat and tastes like some just boiled up some canned tomatoes and fried the meat and fish with no seasonings. The food was bland and poorly made coupled with the lack of good hygiene or cleaning practices I would strongly suggest staying away from here till they literally and figuratively clean up their act. read more

My experience was overall OKAY. There was an issue with the amount charged by the restaurant and my actual statement which was never resolved. I came to pick up a large PEPPER Soup catering order and after traveling an hour was told I needed a container to transport the food...?...so I had to walk to the CVS and buy an overpriced large cooler to transport my pepper soup home and it was too salty anyways. I'd return for the meatpie only. read more

Eat at Queensway -- Friendly service, good food. I stopped into Queensway after learning via Twitter they had won the first Jollof Hackathon, and earned the title of "best jollof rice" in DC (2017). Though I have had jollof rice from Ghana before, I assumed that was it. This competition pulled together the different jollof rice styles from Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. I missed the competition but am seeking out the different styles on my own. Let the tasting begin. "Tinu" - Ms. Atinuke Ogunsalu - the owner and DC-area Queen of Jollof greeted me at the counter and took my order. She asked how I had heard about Queensway (it's tucked away in the back of strip mall). I told her the word on the street was she had the best jollof rice in DC and she smiled, knowing I must have heard about the competition. I ordered jollof rice with beef, to go. When I opened the container at home, it was full serving of rice and beef with a tomato-based sauce. The rice was seasoned and cooked well. The beef was seasoned well, but a bit tough. The sauce smelled sweet, after biting into it however, I was pleasantly surprised at heat that kept building with each bite - just right. I am partial to spicy over sweet and was quite happy with what I ordered. My 10-year old son also got into this tasting. He gave me a "you gone eat that?" look while simultaneously plunging his fork into my plate. I couldn't get my fork out of my mouth quickly enough to pop the back of his knuckles and save my lunch...he ended up with half my plate when it was all over. He smacked his way through my lunch with his mouth open. Terrible table manners, yes; but a sign he like it. After he cleaned his plate, he looked up at me and said, "THIS is GOOD!". It certainly was and I'll (we'll) be back to try other Nigerian dishes. Bonus bite - there was one small bite of what I call pegao. Cubans call it con con, but it's the crunchy rice that forms at the bottom of the pot. If ever I wanted two cultures to fuse it was yesterday. I full plate of jollof rice con con is an recipe I may experiment with in my kitchen. read more

Queensway Restaurant & Catering - Jollof rice with beef, to go. - African Near Me - Riverdale, Maryland

Always a great spot to pick up jollof rice, maybe some moi moi or oxtails. They're never short on flavor and can cater a large party once your friends find out the deliciousness that is Queensway. Eat in or grab it to go, you won't be disappointed! read more

If you just want Jollof, this place would do. But that's where it ends. I stumbled upon this place after late evening with friends. I joined the cue on customers waiting to be served. After a brief moment of confusion, a lady emerged from the back and with a quick glance she hurried back to the kitchen and the wait continued. After awhile she came out and asked what do you want, no apologies for the long wait. The menu has a lot to choose from but with an empty belly craving the satisfaction of authentic Nigeria cuisine, everything on the menu is fair game. I choose to stick with the familiar Jollof with meat and fried rice with plantain. Sure enough in no time the food came out. The Jollof was fresh and mildly spiced. Fried rice was flavorful with good mix of veggies and was refreshingly satisfying. But the meat was bony to my comfort and overly fried and dry, very tough to chew. I expected more from this place but it was underwhelming. This place could be a hit with some changes. Daily fresh cooked food and a healthier oven baked meat instead of deep fried and dried meat would do wonders here. Perhaps more veggie option and a reasonable food price. Portion size is satisfying. Customer service could use improvement. Fix the bathroom and keep it clean, it says a lot about a restaurant. The overall decor could use some upgrade instead of looking like an abandoned Chinese restaurant. read more

Was in dc for the weekend and decided to check this place out cos my friend's boyfriend kept going on about this rice they have called "ata rice". What a disappointment. I should honestly give them 1 star. It was terrible. It had no taste that wasn't pepper. I'm Nigerian, add a little Maggi or salt please. Also, VERY LITTLE MEAT, I couldn't believe it. There was barely any meat. Would not recommend. read more

Food here is great. A Nigerian friend brought me here, and she swears by this food. Their beans are really good, and I have also tried their ox tail, and beef. Very juicy - great sauce. Suya - BAD! Do not recommend. But other than that, their food is really good. Now.. this is not a place you come to sit down and eat. More than likely, you want to take it to go. There is no service here, or in general regard to the consumer. I recommend that you call in advance and order your food. They take forever to give it to you... if you order when you arrive - be prepared to wait at least some 30 minutes. read more

I could eat jollof rice and plantain for days on end~breakfast, lunch and dinner! I like the food a lot and often get "pans of rice and plantain." I think the prices are also better than at the Jamaican restaurants. My cousin loves meatpie and says it's pretty good there. I often place an order and pick up so I can't comment on ambience etc read more

The quality of food and service has gone downhill at this restaurant. I've been going here for sometime and each time, I seem to be disappointed. :( The phone is always busy but yet when you get there, no one is on the phone taking orders. I've ordered food, paid for it, only to be told, the food that I just paid for is not available. It seems as if you have to wait for hours even though there may only be 2-3 people in line. Also, the food isn't that good anymore. :( read more

I tried Queensway based on a friend's recommendation in 2012. I ordered pan sized portions of Jollof Rice, Plaintains, Moi-Moi, and some goat stew. The Jollof rice was tasty but tasted like it had been frozen, thawed and warmed up prior to pick up. The plantains were a disappointment as they were made from unripe bananas and were tasteless ( I threw them out ..no one would eat them). The goat stew was tasty and ample. The moi -moi was a major cause for concern and is the main reason I will not purchase any food from this establishment again. They put the Moi-moi in plastic bags and cooked it in the bags. Based on the fact that plastic releases all types of toxins, I threw the moi-moi out also. I have since discovered Kingsway Cafe in Laurel and this is my new spot for Nigerian/West African Cuisine. Give them a try..you will be pleased. read more

Been standing here for 20 min for a door dash order and the lady just started making the order after I had to show her what my customer ordered on the phone. She leaves the register to work in the kitchen for up to ten minutes at a time, the food looks like dog shit too. read more

This place was a bit difficult to locate. I called to ask for directions and was told to use the cvs in riverdale as a landmark. The ata stew here is soooooo good and the serving was pretty generous!! Meatpie wasn't as great in my opinion. Service was pretty quick as well. I'll definitely be returning for some more ata stew and would like to try their jollof and fried rice. Update 9/18 - NEVERRR coming back here! Stay away! read more

Their food tastes good but their service is horrible, you will call to place an order for food and go there and wait 50 mins-1hour and they won't even remember what you ordered over the phone so you will have to order again and wait‍‍‍‍!!! Then they are really stingy with their soup and cover it with a lot of stew jeez!!! read more

My friend had raved about this location and their "Ata rice." Being Nigerian and not knowing what that even meant only made me more curious as to what the hype was about. Prior to arriving at the restaurant, we had called to place a to-go order. On getting there, we tried to buy scotch egg and they didn't have any so we just waited on our order. When the cashier brought out the food, we opened it and it looked like it had barely any sauce or meat in it. We complained and asked her to at least add more sauce and she reluctantly went to the back to ask her 'madam.' She eventually came back and the sauce that was added on top of it looked completely different from the original sauce which was really confusing. We expressed our concerns and the 'madam' came from the back and said it was the same sauce and that the only difference was the one on top was still cooking on the stove...... confusing! On getting home, we tasted the rice and what was supposed to be meat and plantain and it was surprisingly BLAND!!! We would have had to use a microscope to search for the almost non-existent meat in the food. If I pay $14 for a plate of white rice, I would at least expect a significant amount of meat and some spice. Overall I was very disappointed in their Ata rice and I would not recommend. read more

I know this is petty, but the food here is waayyy better then Sumah's Carryout! So now they get 4 stars!

I highly recommend this hole in the wall tucked away in strip mall on riverdale road. I also recommend you not eat for several hrs beforehand and have nothing planned afterwards. This haphazardly decorated, awkwardly setup eatery haa a vast and delectable menu of sumptuous and flavorful west African dishes as well as some carribean cuisine. I highly recommend their Egussi stew with pounded yam, jollof rice and fried plaintain. I know I have never experienced food coma like the first time I went. These days I get carryout and enjoy the food when I'm not to far from my bed! read more

Slow and horrible service. I came in with my boyfriend. The cashier took his order and went to the back to get his food. Another customer came after me and when she came back, she answered him before me. She assumed that me and my friend were sharing his food together. So when his food was ready,she showed it to me to confirm. It was not until I said "I'm still waiting to order"that she answered me. That is very bad customer service skills and I will never be back here again. I waited over 45 minutes for my food and there was barely anyone there. read more

Service leaves a lot to be desired. I called in my order 30 minutes before arriving. Arrived to find out that order had not been taken. They took down my order all over again. I then had to wait an hour before they brought out the food. The food is good and you can see that they are trying but they really need some management training or simple organizational skills in the kitchen. read more

Good Food!!! Love the Jollof Rice and Suya. Ive eaten at a lot of african places in this area and most of them are not that good at all. this place is one of my favorites although the staff can be slow and act halfway fucking retarded. but the food is kinda worth it. lol read more

The food supposedly is good here. My friend orders from here a lot but my goodness the service is horrendous. God forbid you call in an order they have no system to take the name I guess regardless of whether it's in a computer or not. They just ask you what did you order as though they have no clue what it could be. Wish he didn't like the food so much but since he's from Nigeria and I'm not I guess he gets better service than I do. So good luck! read more

Ok so they know me by name now, lol. Their food is pretty good. Its soooo much more convenient than going to DC for African food. I get a SIDE rice and like a piece of chicken or goat and its like $6. Love it! That ends up being my lunch. Its not as good as like my families home cooked african food but what restaurant usually can really measure up to home cooked? Its great and fills my african food appetite. They just recently changed their decor and added another flat screen, granite counter, and modern tiles, curtains, etc. I like the fact that they're trying to boost their look. I'm a Realtor so I always notice decor and I'm loving their effort. read more

I had heard about it and decided to give them a try. Got there, saw pounded yam on the menu, asked the waitress if it was actually pounded yam or poundo yam, because I know the fucking difference. this woman looked at me funny and said "pounded yam". I was excited and proceeded to order, only for the food to come and it was poundo-fucking-yam. I decided to eat it because I was already starving at that moment. When I asked her about it afterwards, this woman said "who is going to do that here? This is America". That statement irritated the essence of my very existence because I asked her twice explicitly, if it was pounded or poundo yam. I paid for the food. I know what pounded yam is supposed to look and taste like. That's false advertisement, and outright rudeness. Well, that's the first and last time I'll be stepping foot in there. read more

Worst Suya ever! So dry and old! I was shocked they even served that to us. Rice and egussi with goat was good. Order in advance because it takes forever. And there are no servers if u eat in (I learned that the hard way) tons of delicious things to eat from Nigeria and other African countries. read more

Nice food but nasty and dirty staffs..the cashiers in front are always looking angry with No manners,just hoping to get a better place.

I have brought food here many time over. I always order to go. So I can't speak to the experience eating in. They may not be stellar on customer service, but when it comes to food they are awesome. If you want authentic Nigerian food this the place to go. read more

This has been the most disgusting Nigerian restaurant I have ever been to. The décor is so outdated. The food is tasteless Chai! I can't believe this woman won the Jollof festival. The judges should be ashamed. I went here to try the suya and it was like old beef jerky, the jollof rice seems like they made it five months ago, not to mention the Egusi was tasteless such a waste of money. If I would of read the reviews I would have not ate here, it was shut down by the health department. Say away if want authentic Nigerian food!!!! If I could give zero stars I would. read more

I order Jerk Chicken with Jollof Rice. My Jerk sauce and rice was good. However, my chicken was fried extremely hard to the point I couldn't eat it. I informed the cashier and she got smart with me. I know how fried chicken supposed to look. She told me yeah because y'all use flour and stuff to fried over here (WHAT LADY). First of all, my food took about 40 minutes to come out. The customer service here is so bad. I will never come back here again. I asked for the manager and the manager said she's to busy to come out and talk to me. I don't recommend this place at all. read more

I walked into the restaurant and was greeted with "what do you want?", not welcome, hello, or how can I help you. This rude woman was having a conversation with someone who was Nigerian and she was pleasant and smiling. I guess since I wasn't African, I didn't deserve a pleasant greeting but a rude question. To make matters worse, she walks away without completing the sale. I will never return to a place that doesn't value All customers. If it were possible to give a negative 100 stars, I would. read more

Very authentic!! To be honest, even though I have taken family to Ethiopian restaurants for many years which is East African food, I didn't know much about the West African cuisine such as the Nigerian cuisine at Queensway. I found out about Queensway from a Nigerian cooking class offered by my alumni association. Took a friend who is native Nigerian to Queensway and both of us were Blown Away!! No fancy ambient but just simple and down to earthThe Jollof rice, while appears to be plain, the seasoning with curry and a whole lot of other herbs was so yumm and actually quite addicting! I could not stop wanting more! The beef stew was awesome too--lots of layers of flavor--it goes so well with rice and actually can be kept in refrigerator for quite a while-- heating up over rice in microwave can take you to a different world! Amala, which is pounded yam, was made fresh, had interesting consistency-- it's sticky and stringing (my palate loves experiencing different texture and this was fun!). We had amala with an okra sauce which was great too! Wondered about the bucket of water with amala? It is for washing your hand since amala is sticky. The restaurant is quite clean, no concern for sanitation. I have not been able to stop thinking about the flavors Queensway left in my palate and will be taking family and friends there soon! read more

Where do I start, I called an hour ahead of time for fufu egusi and spinach. When me and hubby got there we still had to wait another 20mins. How long does it take to get an order right? The girl saw me standing there and still answered phone calls and taking orders while we stand and wait. The fufu was excellent,the spinach was mehh i could have done it better and the egusi was a dissapointment cos I love egusi. ,Moi Moi was wack ,plantain was old.I like mine fried soft and brown.The only good thing is the fresh fufu.Customer service is non existence. Call 2 hrs ahead for your food or you will be waiting. The decor was kinda like I was in the hood in lagos but then the restaurant is in the middle of the hood.I came all the way from VA for this bull and paid 60 bucks.Go to the African market and cook your own. Am sure it was a busy day but thats no excuse for my food to look like some isH.Done.com read more

I've tried many restaurants in the DMV area and I must say this restaurant is the best by far. Their food is absolutely delicious and they give you a large portion as well. I just wish they opened a little later so it can be my new hang out spot to enjoy their spicy well seasoned suya. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. For those of you who like fish, they also have a new grilled tilapia fish dish that I tried. It's a must try with the tasty baked potatoes. Yum yum yum. I think I'll be having this for lunch tomorrow :-) read more